Out of Practice

by Carsen Taite

  “I want.” Abby’s answer was quick and steady.

  “Good, because it’s all I’ve thought about since I had to leave you in PV.”

  Roxanne instantly wished she hadn’t made the declaration out loud for fear she’d scare Abby away. She started to qualify the declaration, but Abby placed a finger over her lips.

  “Me too. But it’s different now. Better. No surprises, no expectations.” She ran her hand up under the seam of Roxanne’s blouse and whispered into her ear. “Right?”

  “Right.” Roxanne spoke the words without considering what Abby meant because the way Abby was touching her blocked any ability to process thought. She arched into Abby’s touch and submersed her prior hesitancy in a big vat of feels good right now where all she cared about was being naked and being with Abby, and nothing was going to get in the way.

  “Bedroom?” Abby asked, her voice a ragged whisper in her ear.

  Roxanne answered by taking her hand again and leading her down the hall, relieved she’d straightened every room in the house in anticipation of Abby’s visit. You hoped this would happen.

  It was true, she had. Business dinners were for restaurants, not in her house with home-cooked meals abandoned on the stovetop. But when it came to Abby, business and pleasure were all jumbled up in one big ball of I-should-be-asking-her-questions-but-I-just-want-to-rip-off-her-clothes. It was useless—she’d lost all sense of control. Roxanne looked up into Abby’s eyes, which had gone from caramel to deep, dark brown. Abby, the high-powered attorney, was clearly used to being in control, directing the action, getting what she wanted. Okay then. She’d give Abby what she wanted, but she was going to be the one in control tonight. “Take off your clothes.”

  Abby’s eyes went even darker, and a slow smile spread across her face. Roxanne sat on the edge of the bed and watched while Abby slowly unbuttoned her blouse. When it hung loose and open, she reached back and unzipped her skirt and let it fall to the floor. Roxanne sucked in a breath at the sight of Abby standing in the middle of her room, wearing nothing but a jet-black, sexy matching set of bra and panties, but she resisted letting arousal rush things along. “All of your clothes,” she said.

  Abby complied, even slower now, each movement a delicious but excruciating delay. When she was finally completely naked, Roxanne crooked her finger and motioned her to the bed. “Lie down.”

  Abby complied, easing around her to lie back against the pillows, deliberately brushing her leg along the way. Roxanne shuddered at the touch. She was so turned on right now, but determination to remain in charge kept her from giving in to the desire to fall into Abby’s arms. She inched out of Abby’s reach and pulled her dress up over her head and dropped it to the floor, enjoying the gasp of pleasure she received in response. Abby reached for her, but she caught her wrist and tugged Abby’s arms above her head while she bent down to take Abby’s breasts in her mouth, one after the other, over and over, lavishing them with her tongue until Abby writhed beneath her and began to beg. “Feel how wet you make me.”

  Roxanne slid her hand down and ran a finger along Abby’s thigh, deliberately skirting the space between her legs, trailing it back up her abdomen. Abby quaked beneath her. “Do you want me to touch you there?”

  “Please, yes.”

  Roxanne heard the raw need in Abby’s voice, and her resolve to stay in control started to slip. She wanted nothing more than to give Abby the release she sought, and her own body thrummed with the need to give in to the pleasure they both craved. Pretending she had the power to resist the pull of Abby’s allure was nothing more than an act, and she decided in that moment control was overrated. She captured Abby’s lips between her own and slid her fingers into her wet, hot center, determined to make her come again and again. Her last thought before she gave in to Abby’s desire was crystal clear. Abby had captured her heart from the very first night.

  * * *

  Abby shot awake and scrambled to sit up in bed. Instinct told her something was wrong, but it took a moment for her to realize morning light was peeping through the blinds, so she’d either forgotten to lower her blackout shades or she wasn’t at home. She squinted at the mahogany footboard of the sleigh bed. She didn’t have a footboard and she definitely didn’t have anything as sentimental as a sleigh bed. This meant trouble. She patted the space next to her, and her palm touched silky hair which, once her eyes adjusted to the light, she could see was fanned out on the pillow beside her. Damn.

  Last night had been amazing, and she’d enjoyed every second she and Roxanne had spent exploring each other’s bodies, but she’d never meant to stay over. Staying over was the kind of thing that girlfriends or people trying out for the role of girlfriends did, and no matter how great the sex had been, this was not that.

  You didn’t mind sleepovers with Roxanne when you were on vacation.

  Abby couldn’t deny her inner voice was right, but she wasn’t on vacation anymore. This was real life, and she’d already broken too many of her standard rules. She looked around for something to tell her the time and spied an old school digital alarm clock on the nightstand just inches from Roxanne’s head. Seven a.m. If she hurried, she could sneak out before the sun fully illuminated her departure. She eased back the sheets and gently swung her legs over the side of the bed, wincing at the creak of the springs.

  “Are you trying to make a break for it?”

  Abby froze in place at the sound of Roxanne’s groggy but very much awake voice. “No. I mean, I should go. Because work and stuff.” Damn. Way to be articulate. She turned so that she was facing Roxanne, completely unprepared for how the sight of her naked body tousled in the bedsheets might weaken her resolve. “I had a great time last night.”

  Roxanne reached over and wove her fingers through hers. “Me too. Do you really have to go or are you just scared if you don’t, I’ll make more out of this than you intended?”

  Abby wanted to lie and give some plausible reason why she needed to rush off. The possibilities were endless. An early court setting, a meeting with a client, but she couldn’t manage to pull together the strings of a lie when Roxanne so clearly deserved the truth. She settled on a singular admission. “I’m sorry.”

  Roxanne raised her hand and kissed it softly, trailing her lips up to Abby’s wrist. Abby sucked in a breath as the tug of arousal held her in place.

  “There’s no need to be sorry. I’m a big girl and I know where things stand. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to spend the rest of the morning continuing where we left off, but if you really have to go, it’s all good. Either way, I’m not going to freak out on you.”

  “Now I feel like a real jerk.”

  Roxanne pulled her closer and ran her hand up the side of her waist. She let it linger for a moment just under Abby’s breast, teasing a finger back and forth in super slow motion. Abby could feel her chest tighten and the air in the room constrict. Twin needs—escape and surrender—fought for dominance, and she wasn’t sure which to cheer on.

  “You don’t feel like a jerk to me. You feel like maybe you’re not quite ready to leave.”

  Roxanne barely got the last words out before Abby pulled her into a kiss. A hot, searing kiss that was supposed to sate her, but instead it merely stoked the fire. She stroked Roxanne’s tongue with her own until she was forced to pull back for air. When she caught her breath, she said, “You might be the best kisser. Ever.”

  “You are,” Roxanne said between gasps. “It’s like we’ve kissed a thousand times before. Like we practice on the daily. Like we’re world kissing champions vying for the title.”

  Abby laughed. “Can’t we both win?”

  “I guess, if we’re playing for the same team. Or maybe we just tie.”

  Abby ran a finger along Roxanne’s breast. “Oh, I think we’re playing for the same team.”

  “Then let’s play.”

  Abby leaned back against the bed frame. She didn’t have any early meetings. She didn’t have to be in court. She was he
r own boss. If she wanted to stay and fool around with Roxanne all morning, there was nothing stopping her. The only reason she had for leaving right now was to keep Roxanne from thinking this was something more than it was, but she’d already said she didn’t.

  Too much thinking was threatening to dampen the mood. Time to enjoy the here and now and not worry about how either of them would feel later today, tomorrow, or when they next faced off over Barclay’s. “Yes, let’s.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Abby strolled into the office at two p.m., feeling absolutely no guilt about spending the better part of the day naked in Roxanne’s bed. She smiled and waved at Graham. “Happy Friday, Graham. What’s shaking?”

  “Campbell and Wynne are waiting in the conference room as you requested. Will you be needing refreshments for your meeting?”

  Abby considered telling him they would like tea and crumpets but worried he might take her seriously and spend the afternoon scouring the city to find legit crumpets. “No. Thanks though. As always, your attention to detail is most appreciated.”

  She stopped by her office long enough to stow her purse, and then headed to the conference room where she strode through the door and announced, “I’ve decided what we need to do,” but stopped short when she spotted Campbell and Wynne hastily hiding something on the table.

  “What’s up?” she asked, surprised at the guilty expressions they both wore. “You look like you’re plotting world domination. Or did Campbell make another extravagant purchase for the firm? What’s going on?”

  Campbell stood and scooted over making it impossible for Abby to see what was on the table behind her. She crossed her heart. “No world domination in the works, and no extravagant purchase. Not for the firm, anyway.”

  Abby maneuvered to try to see what Campbell was hiding, but Campbell kept shifting to block her view. After a couple of seconds of this, Wynne gently pushed Campbell to the side. “We have a confession to make,” Wynne said. She reached behind Campbell’s back and held up a stack of magazines. “We’ve become obsessed with all things wedding.”

  Abby stared at the stack of bridal magazines in Wynne’s hand and then at her friends. They were wearing big smiles, and it was pretty clear reading bridal magazines was something they were actually enjoying rather than an onerous by-product of client representation. It took a full minute, but finally the puzzle pieces fell into place. “Oh, wow. You’re getting married?”

  Campbell’s smile faded. “Try not to act like we just told you the world was ending.”

  “It’s not.” Abby fumbled for words. “I mean, I’m happy for you. That’s exciting news.” She forced a smile, hoping it looked slightly authentic and searched her mind for how normal people would respond to such news. “Who proposed? How did it go? When’s the big day?”

  “Wynne surprised me with a ring in a box of Kate’s donuts,” Campbell said. “Remember how I said I thought she had a lot on her mind lately? Well, apparently, asking me to marry her was top of the list.”

  “It’s true. Everyone thinks Campbell’s the big romantic. I wanted to show her I’ve got moves of my own.” Wynne set the magazines back on the table. “We haven’t set a date yet. We’re in the very early stages. And this is not the way Campbell wanted to tell you.”

  “Have you told Grace yet?” Abby asked, wishing Grace were here because she would know what other questions a person was supposed to ask in this situation.

  “Nope,” Campbell said. “I was planning a thing to tell you both at the same time.”

  Knowing Campbell, the “thing” was going to be some grand reveal, and now Abby had completely blown it both by discovering them planning and by her less than enthusiastic reaction. She summoned reserves of empathy and pulled Campbell into a hug. “I’m sorry I spoiled the surprise. I’m a big jerk, but I’m happy for you both.” She winked. “I bet I can get you a nice discount on a couple of wedding dresses.”

  Campbell punched her in the arm. “You’re a normal-sized jerk, but I forgive you.” She pointed to the magazines. “You know, the BBF has a lot of great ideas about weddings. Maybe you should keep her around so we could use her as a consultant.”

  “About that…I may have spent the night with her.”

  “May have?”

  “Okay, I did.”

  Campbell turned to Wynne. “Abby’s not a stay the night kind of date.”

  “Hey!”

  “I speak only the truth. I’m just trying to give Wynne some context.”

  Abby sighed. “She’s right. There’s something about her though.”

  “I know exactly what it is,” Campbell said.

  “Spill it, wise one.”

  “It’s the lure of the forbidden. You know that nothing can come of it, so it’s perfectly okay to take risks.”

  Wynne placed her hand on Campbell’s arm. “Honey,” she said with a warning tone.

  “It’s okay,” Campbell said. “She knows I’m right. It’s a vicious cycle. BBF is off limits for anything more than a hook-up because she’s trying to take down Abby’s client, but the fact that she’s off limits makes the idea of being with her even more exciting. There’s really no risk because neither one of them can get involved. The brides-to-be would turn on BBF if they knew she was sleeping with the lawyer of the company that stole their dresses, and Tommy and the twins would have a fit if they knew Abby was giving it up for the other side.”

  Abby stood frozen in place as Campbell’s words landed like sharp darts penetrating the armor she wore to protect her heart. Was Campbell right? Was she that predictable and that much of a player? Pre-PV, she would’ve proudly worn that badge, but something about the way Campbell was describing her now made her feel empty and shallow. When had things changed? Or was she merely so wrapped up in all things wedding that she viewed her own cynicism through a different lens?

  She closed her eyes for a second and relived this morning. Not the part where she tried to sneak away before Roxanne woke up part, but the part where Roxanne had made pancakes and they’d sat naked in bed, scarfing up every last bite before one more round of sex. The time they’d spent had been like the mornings they’d shared in PV, and completely at odds with her usual fare. The truth was she liked this better, but admitting it out loud called into question so many facets of her life, she wasn’t ready to go there for fear her entire sense of self would come tumbling down. Besides, if Campbell was right, Roxanne probably wasn’t any more interested in anything more than casual sex either. Why should she put herself out there if there was nothing to gain from doing so?

  “You’re right, as usual,” she said. “Nothing to see here except sex so wild I fell asleep from the exertion before I could drive home.” She forced a laugh. “She did agree to back off the story long enough for us to make some progress with Barclay’s, plus she’s going to interview Tommy to give some perspective to the story. My goal is to get her to do the interview and tease it on her blog before we get a hearing on the injunction on the minority oppression issue. I’ve got the motion almost ready to go.”

  “Hmm,” Campbell said. “Have you ever handled one of those before?”

  “No, but I bet your fiancée has,” Abby said and they both looked at Wynne.

  “I have. Once. They’re not common and they aren’t usually successful.” Wynne inclined her head. “But you’ve got the right facts to support it. You’ve got an inherited family business and the majority shareholders are reluctant owners. They didn’t include Tommy in the decision to close the stores, and shutting down the way they did is causing damage to his reputation and affecting his ability to form another business.” She folded her arms and nodded. “With all the bad PR Barclay’s has been getting, we won’t have any issues proving harm. It’s as good a case for minority shareholder oppression as I’ve seen. If nothing else, filing a suit, may get the twins to see reason and settle. What does Tommy want out of all this?”

  “Ideally, he would like the stores to reopen and undergo some kin
d of reorganization, but he doesn’t have the resources to sustain the stores under the current circumstances. The big thing is retaining his reputation. It might be too late to keep the existing stores open. If you were a bride looking for a dress, would you go to Barclay’s?” Abby laughed. “I guess you two are uniquely situated to answer that question now.”

  “We’re so not there yet,” Campbell said. “And quit bringing up wedding plans in front of Wynne because she’s already mad at me for blowing the big reveal.”

  “Only because I know how much you wanted it to be a thing,” Wynne said. “My parents got married in front of the justice of the peace when I was seven. I have no perspective when it comes to all things wedding.”

  “You will,” Campbell said. “Trust me. I got this.”

  Abby watched them gaze into each other’s eyes and resisted her usual eye roll at any overt show of emotion, especially the lovey-dovey kind. Was everyone but her wired like this? Even her mother, who had every reason to believe that relationships would never work out, kept up her quest for the perfect man, the perfect happily ever after. Why couldn’t she muster a glimmer of hope for the same?

  Her phone buzzed with a text and she glanced at the screen. A picture of an empty plate sat next to a bottle of maple syrup. The caption read: Best breakfast ever. She smiled and a flood of warmth coursed through her at the memory of Roxanne putting the last forkful of pancakes in her mouth and saying she was glad Abby had stayed to play. She was glad too, but play was all it was. They both knew that and that was okay because play was all she had the capacity to handle no matter how much she wondered if something more might be possible. Sex and pancakes. Who needed anything else?

  Her phone buzzed again, and she smiled at the anticipation of another message from Roxanne, but this text was from her mother and it was a bombshell.

  Having the wedding this weekend. I can count on you to be there, right? XOXO